Ledley King has described Tanguy Ndombele as a player with ‘unbelievable ability’ – and suggested that the best is still yet to come from the French midfielder.
Much was expected of Ndombele when he joined for a club-record from Lyon last summer, but he’s struggled in adapting to the pace of the Premier League, starting just 12 games in England’s topflight.
The 23-year-old has been on the receiving end of plenty of criticism this season – not least from his own manager Jose Mourinho after the draw at Burnley in March.
Such were Mourinho’s concerns with his fitness, the Portuguese turned up at Ndombele’s house during lockdown and organised a one-on-one training session with the midfielder at Hadley Common last month.
However, despite his tricky start to life in England, King, who sympathises with Ndombele’s injury problems, remains confident that the midfielder will come good – and reckons that’ll be benefit from a run in the team.
“I tell you what I see, I see a player with unbelievable ability,” the former Tottenham captain told The Beautiful Game Podcast.
“But it has been difficult for him. I think it started in pre-season, he picked up an injury and he found the pace of English football and the training totally different to what he was used to. I think he struggled at first and then picked up an injury.
“When that happens you’re playing catch-up throughout the season. I’m sure given a good run in the team you’re going to see how good this player is.”
